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He turns around to see the sight and teasingly taunts. “See.”

It’s impossible not to shake my head in amusement.

Charles is a fucking great man. From the way he treats his daughter, to the way he’s welcomed me into his family with open arms is phenomenal. He even pulled a few favors to help me get an interview for the loading dock at Harry’s Hardware about a week after we met. He then spent two afternoons post work coaching me through the process. Practicing. Eating cookies and critiquing the things he knows those hiring look for. Jaye was so fucking giddy about us bonding that she could barely wait until he was out of the driveway to jump my bones. The rehearsal shit panned out for me. I aced the interview. Passed the second. And was hired a couple days later. My background check just finished processing on Friday, so now I get to start tomorrow – Monday. Does it pay really well? Fuck no. Are the hours unfucking godly? Unfortunately, yes. Which is why my curly haired beauty is losing her shit in our driveway instead of helping us move out the furniture to make room for the new bedroom pieces we finally agreed upon.

Dane and Charles both laugh at the situation yet seeing Jaye’s face sterner than ever prevents me from doing the same. Tossing my hands up in the air out of irritation precedes grumping, “Fuck, Jaye, what do you want me to do? Not take the job?”

She scrunches her nose like she’s preventing herself from saying yes.

“That is not a fucking option, and you know it.”

“Then let me-”

“I’m not letting you buy me a goddamn car!”

“You can buy me a car,” Dane playfully pokes during his stroll over. “I’m not nearly as selfish as that ground pounder there.” He tosses her an overly cheesy smirk. “I’m much more of a giver.”

“You’re gonna make megiveyou a foot to the ass if you keep that shit up,” I good naturedly jab back.

“Jaye, you know why he doesn’t want you to buy him a car,” Charles reminds in a firmer tone. “And I don’t blame him.”

“But I don’t want him walking home from work!”

“I don’t mind walking, sweetheart.”

“Imind you walking! It’s not safe. You could get hit by a car or a bus or a train-”

“There aren’t any trains anywhere near that location. And you know that. Because if there werethiswouldn’t be an issue still.”

“What about when it’s raining? Or a million degrees outside? Or snowing?”

“We could buy me a bike?”

She presents me with a sarcastic scowl.

“Wow. Look. At. That. Face,” Charles chuckles, heading back to the house to gather more items. “That’s the one that wiped out the dinosaurs.”

Dane joins him on the laughing and jogs away to join his side.

“Take this shit seriously,” she snips at a lower volume.

“I. Am.” My arms fold across my thrift store Guns N’ Roses t-shirt. “You just don’t like the alternatives I’m suggesting and menottaking this job is –I repeat–notan option.”

“Archer-”

“Sweetheart, Ineedthis.”

Her entire body seems to melt from the weight of the statement.

“Do I wanna get up at three in the morning to go in at four? Fuck no. Do I wanna have to wait around to be picked up by you or your dad or that jarhead I can’t believe I call my friend? Absolutely fucking not. But the situation is what it is, Jaye. This is the first real job I’ve been offered since I was discharged. We’ve searched for this formonths.Don’t force me into abandoning the first…semi-independent win I’ve had in years.” My head tilts slightly to one side on a whispered begging. “Please, sweetheart.Don’t make me choose you over it.”

The woman I love to see smiling rather than frowning defeatedly tosses her arms in the air, stomps over, and wraps them around me. “Fine. But I hate this. Not the you having a job thing. I like that. I thinkyou’lllike that. And I can’t wait to hear all about your work gossip-”

“I don’t gossip.”

“You will,” she casually brushes off. “I just…hate that there’s a huge new elephant in our relationship to eat right after it feels like we just finished one.”

Her reference to our late spring cleaning summons a soft grin to my face.